Dear All
The right to protest is a hard fought right which should be protected to the hilt.
For sometime the Glasgow Labour Council of shame has been itching to ban Parades.
There is now a plan so that Parades will effectively be banned from Glasgow city centre.
In Glasgow, it is reckoned to be about 500 marches a year within the city’s boundaries and it costs a fortune in Police time, manpower and money.
Two groups need to be permanently banned from the city’s streets, the Protestant Orange orders and Irish republican groups.
These marches disrupted the life of every day Glaswegians and fuel sectarianism; it seems that cost considerations rather than ethics finally have moved the Labour Council of shame to act.
Speaking for the Labour Council of shame, Jim ‘the undertaker’ Coleman said:
“What we have done is try to reach a balance where we protect people’s democratic right to demonstrate; but without overwhelming the rights of the wider community”.
As usual with Labour plans, they don’t seem to be well thought-out, thrown into the mix is a suggest that in future people walk four abreast to allow quicker progress and reduce time and disruption to the public.
Surely this will make the length of time longer as Parades are stretched out?
Do people walking four abreast move quicker than say six?
Will this apply to the bands, those carrying big banners, processions with floats?
It seems that reason for consultation and feedback is that poor old Jim ‘the undertaker’ Coleman hasn’t grasped what he and his fellow Labour Councillors of shame want.
The ‘plan’ is fluid because he wants others to fill in the details then claim he is acting in the spirit of co-operation.
The right to protest is a hard fought right which should be protected to the hilt.
For sometime the Glasgow Labour Council of shame has been itching to ban Parades.
There is now a plan so that Parades will effectively be banned from Glasgow city centre.
In Glasgow, it is reckoned to be about 500 marches a year within the city’s boundaries and it costs a fortune in Police time, manpower and money.
Two groups need to be permanently banned from the city’s streets, the Protestant Orange orders and Irish republican groups.
These marches disrupted the life of every day Glaswegians and fuel sectarianism; it seems that cost considerations rather than ethics finally have moved the Labour Council of shame to act.
Speaking for the Labour Council of shame, Jim ‘the undertaker’ Coleman said:
“What we have done is try to reach a balance where we protect people’s democratic right to demonstrate; but without overwhelming the rights of the wider community”.
As usual with Labour plans, they don’t seem to be well thought-out, thrown into the mix is a suggest that in future people walk four abreast to allow quicker progress and reduce time and disruption to the public.
Surely this will make the length of time longer as Parades are stretched out?
Do people walking four abreast move quicker than say six?
Will this apply to the bands, those carrying big banners, processions with floats?
It seems that reason for consultation and feedback is that poor old Jim ‘the undertaker’ Coleman hasn’t grasped what he and his fellow Labour Councillors of shame want.
The ‘plan’ is fluid because he wants others to fill in the details then claim he is acting in the spirit of co-operation.
Straightaway the proposals have attracted criticism from the Orange Order.
A spokesman for the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland said:
“While we remain happy to sit down and discuss our parades in a spirit of co-operation, we are aware of our rights and will not see those rights curtailed in order to satisfy the political will or prejudice of a handful of city councillors.”
Then perhaps the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland will be happy to foot the entire bill for policing their event.
Such events are covered by the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 so the Glasgow Labour Council of shame might end up facing a legal challenge under Human Rights legalisation.
Glasgow hosts more Loyalist and Republican parades than the Belfast and City of Derry council areas combined.
In Scotland, the Labour Party effectively allowed sectarianism to develop and even set up an industry to manage it.
They never tackled the problem, the Protestant Orange orders and Irish republican groups marches should be banned or severely limited.
And the cost of any such marches should be paid in full by them.
There is a distinct difference between these marches and normal protesting.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
A spokesman for the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland said:
“While we remain happy to sit down and discuss our parades in a spirit of co-operation, we are aware of our rights and will not see those rights curtailed in order to satisfy the political will or prejudice of a handful of city councillors.”
Then perhaps the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland will be happy to foot the entire bill for policing their event.
Such events are covered by the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 so the Glasgow Labour Council of shame might end up facing a legal challenge under Human Rights legalisation.
Glasgow hosts more Loyalist and Republican parades than the Belfast and City of Derry council areas combined.
In Scotland, the Labour Party effectively allowed sectarianism to develop and even set up an industry to manage it.
They never tackled the problem, the Protestant Orange orders and Irish republican groups marches should be banned or severely limited.
And the cost of any such marches should be paid in full by them.
There is a distinct difference between these marches and normal protesting.
Yours sincerely
George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University
1 comment:
You fight for human rights but don't think people have the right to uphold their culture and traditions? The problem with this city is it's people like you who is in charge of the council and other places of power
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